The performance of predictive maintenance may be based upon maintaining reliability or availability of an item of equipment for operational use. A predictive maintenance plan (e.g., a maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) plan) may include replacing or repairing one or more components at various times to minimize the downtime of the equipment. The decision of what components to replace or repair and when to replace components may be based upon a factor that relates to the physical condition of a component, an estimated physical condition of a component, or other similar factors. Accordingly, although a component of the equipment may comply with a desired physical condition, the overall performance of the equipment may not satisfy a desired performance standard. Thus, a need exists for performing predictive maintenance that considers one or more other factors beyond the observed physical condition of a component.
Even if the reliability of the equipment may be maintained in accordance with a limited predictive maintenance scheme, restricted to the physical condition of a component, the limited predictive maintenance scheme may be economically inefficient for a maintenance service provider. For example, the maintenance provider may suffer reduced economies of scale by purchasing duplicative and interchangeable components. Further, the maintenance provider and the equipment operator may incur additional expenses by poor timing of maintenance activities based on an insufficiently robust prediction of equipment reliability or of the useful service life of respective components. Thus, a need exists for managing the interchangeability, repair, or replacement of components in a predictive maintenance environment.
Another feature that a prior art predictive maintenance scheme may lack is a framework to support the decision of whether to repair a component or an assembly of components, rather than replace the component or assembly of components with another component. For example, the equipment may have additional downtime if an inappropriate decision is made to repair or refurbish a critical component, rather than providing a new component. Thus, a need exists for a predictive maintenance scheme that supports an enhanced maintenance decision on: (1) whether to repair or replace components (e.g., parts) of an item of equipment and (2) the determination of a suitable schedule (e.g., the most advantageous schedule) for the execution of the maintenance decision.